Calico Museum & Sarabhai Foundation

General

THE CALICO MUSEUM of Textile is undoubtedly one of the foremost textile museums and a celebrated institute in Indian textiles around the world. Its remarkable collection of fabrics spanning varied and remote regions of India exemplifies handicraft textiles across five centuries. The textiles were collected with a vision to conserve, built awareness and empower the vast and deep textile heritage of India. Over the years the collection has grown into an outstanding repository of fabrics based on colors, pattern, weave and embellishment and has become a recognized center providing Indian and international scholars an opportunity to study and draw in-depth knowledge on this extraordinary range of Indian ethos. The Museum inspired by Dr. Ananda Coomaraswamy was formally housed in 1949 by Shri Gautam Sarabhai and his sister Gira Sarabhai in the large industrial house of Calico. In 1983 it was moved to the beautiful Retreat premises of the Foundation in the Shahibaug area.

The Sarabhai foundation, started in 1959 by Smt. Sarladevi Sarabhai and Shri Ambalal Sarabhai, is a non-profit devoted, among other things, to the ‘promotion of science, art and literature’. With a view of preserving and interpreting the cultural heritage of India, in recent years the foundation has also been holding workshops to sensitize museum and university scholars to look at art afresh and more closely. Even if you are not interested in textiles or art, still a visit to the museum is worth it for its ethnic Gujarati haveli architecture and the idyllic calm beauty of the surrounding nature.

Location:
In the premises of the Sarabhai foundation in the Shahibaug area

Phone: +91-79-22865995, 22868172

Email: calicomuseum@gmail.com , www.sarabhaifoundation.com or

www.calicomuseum.org

Timings:
No entry after 11 am

Entry restricted to 30 visitors – 15 visitors on the basis of first-come-first-served and 15 by group booking. Organisers of tours up to 15 members are requested to contact the administration to make and confirm the arrangement in advance.

How to get there

By road: Gujarat has one of the better developed road networks in India. Ahmedabad is well connected with all major cities and towns by road. Prominent bus stops are located at Gitamandir near Kalupur Railway Station and Paldi. Regular bus services are available by Gujarat state transport buses and private operators to all the major destinations of the state.

By rail: The main railway station is located in Kalupur area. This station falls under the prominent national railway circuit and is connected to all major cities of India. If you are on the western side of the Sabarmati river, then you can go to the Gandhigram station near Ashram road to buy your railway tickets easily.

By air: Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel airport at Ahmedabad is an international airport with direct flights to USA, UK, Singapore, Dubai and other international hubs. Numerous domestic flights are also operational from here.